Graduates: Do You Own YourName.com?

Right about this time, parents are wondering how long it will be before the "graduation vacation" is over. Time to enter the next phase of life. Up to this point, it was practice.

I’ve read alot of tips for graduates, but one thing that every one should try to claim sooner rather than later is www.YourName.com. I know, you might think you’re the only Mike Sansone out there, then you grow up and find you could fill a baseball roster full of ‘em.

What do you do with your domain name?  Start a blog that speaks on what you want to do in business, your professional passions. Need an example?  Meet Andy Drish – Young Man Connected.

Parents, go get your toddler’s name parked and reserved today. Who knows how domain names will be used in 10 or 20 years?

Other fantastic tips for graduates:

www.YourName.com – Go get it.

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  • http://www.personalbrandingblog.com Dan Schawbel

    I agree with you, except for the fact that I think that it will be too long to wait till after college. People need to register their name immediately because there are a few billion people in the world and some have similiar names.
    There has been a lot of buzz around “YourDomain.com” so people are more inclined to register now and not wait.

  • http://www.maryschmidt.com Mary Schmidt

    Yeppers. I was very excited when I managed to grab “Mary Schmidt” There are about 6 million of us – just in a Google search. But, I’m the top result (helps if you – ahem – blog.)

  • Brett Trout

    Great advice. I have owned mine for nearly a decade and have found it to be one of the best investment I have ever made. The great thing is that it is so portable and so memorable. If you change jobs, locations, interests, your domain is still viable. People I have not seen since 2000 still remember my website is my name.

  • http://www.whereisjohnwilson.com John Wilson

    Owning your own name is huge for search engine optimization. Some people buy common names and then just hold on to them, like a stock, until another realizes they should buy it. Wish I would have thought of buying johnwilson.com much much sooner.
    I am currently trying to move my own website, http://www.whereisjohnwilson.com up the Google food chain, and I cover the science of names too.

  • http://www.drewsmarketingminute.com Drew McLellan

    Mike,
    Thanks for the shout out on the e-book. My hope is that we can get as many people as possible to share the link and the knowledge with not just college kids but anyone in the midst of a job search.
    I don’t know about you, but I found some thoughts and suggestions as applicable to me as to a recent college grad.
    Drew

  • http://www.converstations.com Mike Sansone

    > Dan – Right! And folks shouldn’t wait (as John points out a few comments below yours). Parenst should be reserving names for their kids long before college age.
    >There is now and always will be but one Mary Schmidt in my book. Heck, when I hear the words “New Mexico”, I think of Mary Schmidt!
    >Brett – Good branding! And how easy is that, BrettTrout.com
    >Good points, John. Keep rising to the top. My wife (formerly Cynthia Wilson) still says she married me for my last name, though after 19 years – I think she found other reasons too:-)
    >Drew, the e-book is a great primer for anyone. Maybe the content can be wrapped into a new title down the road (Help Free Agents Find Work)

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